Linux LMMS users, how goes it?

[mjolnir]

Hi, I just wanted to report that I'm having success running
LMMS Nightly AppImage builds on CachyOS linux (an Arch variant).

I've completely transitioned to using the Nightly AppImages instead of the Arch repo editions (which are older). The stability is pretty good, and when I get a newer edition, I just delete the older one and run the new one instead. I tend to rename the download to just plain old "lmms.AppImage" and set the executability from within the "Permissions" tab of the "File" >> "Properties..." menu of XFCE.

It's really easy. Don't be intimidated by the process.
Thanks to the LMMS devs for making AppImages available!

If you feel like it, please share which Linux OS you are using and which LMMS version you currently use to get music done.

Here's me:

Linux: CachyOS Linux 7.1.8-1
LMMS: (Nightly) v1.3.0-alpha.1.1024+67c3ad
Desktop: XFCE

Best use: I mostly use the LMMS step editor to sequence one-shot drum WAVs (make rhythm WAV loops).

[mjolnir]

Still no responses?
Seriously? I saw a tiny bit of discussion on LinuxMusicians.com
Where are you guys? LOL

[musikbear]

I'm having success running LMMS Nightly AppImage builds on CachyOS linux (an Arch variant).

Alpha.2 https://lmms.io/download#linux is the one to use now! More stable than ever. Lots of bugfixes too

[mjolnir]

I did try out the new Alpha, and all is well.
However, was it stupid of me to have switched back to using the Nightly versions?

I work on the assumption that I'll get new features faster through the Nightly versions and that LMMS is stable enough now, that even the Nightly version are generally stable enough to use (this has been my exact experience so far).

The only thing I don't use is LMMS from the Arch / CachyOS repo, because it seems to be outdated. I don't have any open communication channels to those package maintainers to get them to provide the current LMMS alpha2 and I think on policy they maybe "don't support alphaware" (yet), no matter how good it might be (they wait for it to mature a bit more, maybe).

But anyways, I used to get a bug with the Arch repo version until I switched to the AppImages hosted on the LMMS.io website, which are of course other varieties and some more up to date.

Anyways, that's that. I'd love to hear about anybody else's LMMS work environment and thoughts.

[mjolnir]

A brief update: (for the curious)

I'm getting good results still with the LMMS Nightly AppImage versions (as of late September, 2026).

Also, in unrelated DAW news, I'm getting better stability with my other DAW programs also, since I switched from Yabridge to VSTbridge (after upgrading Wine-staging from 9.21 to 11.18).* The only downside, is that I somehow lost support for 32-bit plugins (I think at the OS level).

This doesn't directly affect LMMS, but I like to use more than one DAW and pass WAV stems back and forth between them. I find that LMMS is great for arranging, as an idea pad, and as a WAV drum sequencer. Lately I've been rendering synth riffs in Reaper, and importing them into LMMS for LMMS overdubs.

I still like how LMMS handles incoming MIDI and quantizes it in a way that seems more simple than Reaper. Also, LMMS's built-in sound generators are really pretty decent for special effects and accents. And if you have any SF2 banks, LMMS can handle those fine too!

Anyways, music life is good.

If anybody else uses more than one DAW, let us know how you combine them.

(* = https://github.com/rations/vstbridge)